Gratitude may be the last thing on your mind when your finding life tough. We often overlook the simple things in life when the everyday stresses and strains pile up. However, when we take the time to focus on an attitude of gratitude, amazing changes come into our lives.
Losing your enthusiasm can make it hard to see anything wonderful going on. Sometimes we just can’t see whats right in front of us when we are in a dark place.
Feeling bored with life or managing a crisis can steal your focus and give you a mindset of lack. When your focus is negative it feeds the sense that nothing’s quite right and makes it harder to see what is actually working in your life.
So how can you turn things around? By digging deep and focusing on an attitude of gratitude!
What is gratitude?
Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.
Eckhart Tolle
Have you ever noticed those days where absolutely everything seems to go wrong? The negative thoughts kick in, and you start to preempt all the other things that may go wrong. Then before you know it, you prove yourself right! That ball keeps on rolling and your day or situation spirals out of control.
Those situations prove just how powerful the power of thought is. So if we can have a negative influence on our day with a negative mindset, we have the power to flip that around.
This is a game changer. Just imagine what you are capable of achieving with a positive, grateful attitude. Gratitude is a surefire way to revive your enthusiasm and help you shift your mindset from lack to abundance.
Once you make the shift and start to look intentionally for things to be grateful for it builds on itself. What once was an underwhelming life feels refreshed and revived.
How can you express gratitude when your worlds upside down?
This takes a bit of practice, but if your willing to give it a go, amazing things will happen. It starts with acknowledging that its 100% ok to have a bad day or to feel really angry, annoyed, frustrated etc. You are human not a robot.
The next step comes down to you. What are you going to do about it? Are you going to let the situation/circumstance overtake your day? Your mindset? Or are you going to flip it on its head?
You may be thinking, well that’s easier said then done when your stuck in a mind funk! Yeah I know, I’ve been there. It’s tough but ultimately the choice is yours.
What I do know is this. When I live my life wrapped up in a negative mindset, negativity follows me. Fact! However when I make the choice to focus on all thats good in my world. When I invest my energy into those thoughts and choose gratitude, things ALWAYS find a way of working out.
Gratitude comes in all forms
If expressing gratitude and working on a positive mindset is new to you, you may find some that some of the following suggestions sound so simple. Too good to be true even. But the thing is, all the best things in life are simple. We over complicate things all the time, when really the answers, peace, comfort etc are right in front of us.
There are lots of ways to find and express your gratitude. Gratitude isn’t just about being thankful its about paying it back. Spreading that positive energy around like confetti. Like attracts like, one good turn deserves another.
Expressing gratitude is like passing a torch around, lighting the way for others to jump aboard and pass on the light. From handing out compliments to taking walks to admiring the scenery. Practicing simple acts of gratitude everyday will change your life for the better and in turn those around you will notice and take it onboard.
What works for you may look nothing like what works for someone else. Here are a few suggestions for you to up-level your gratitude journey.Verbalize your gratitude
Keep a gratitude journal
Journal your way to a more enthusiastic life. Keeping a journal can help you express your thoughts and feelings and sort through whatever’s on your mind. If you’re looking to increase your gratitude, journaling can be a big help.
There are pre-formatted gratitude journals, or you can easily use a blank journal to record the things you’re grateful for. Spend time each day reviewing what you have to be grateful for and watch the pages fill with gracious thoughts.
List all the little things that happened in your day. The coffee your colleague made you. The parking space you got close to work. The door that was held open for you when your arms were full. Before long you will be overrun with items on your list that remind you of all the joy you have in your life.
Check out this printable journal available through the link below 👇🏼. Simply download, print and use again and again. You will never have to buy another journal again!
Verbalise your attitude to gratitude
Speak your way to a more enthusiastic life. Have you ever passed someone and expressed that they looked great or that you admire something they are wearing? Chances are you will have made them feel great and they will carry that feeling with them.
Speaking words of gratitude can help you and the people you encounter feel happier and more joyful. The more often you share your gratitude by saying thank you or expressing yourself, the more often you will infuse yourself and others with kindness.
The kinder you are and the more you express yourself out loud, you will find yourself feeling more gracious and enthusiastic. The kindness is infectious and has a ripple effect that can reach outward to many more people. Carrying the torch we mentioned earlier.
Practice a gratitude meditation
Meditate your way to a more enthusiastic life. Being in the moment with your grateful energy is powerful stuff.
What you think about, you bring about.
Rhonda Byrne
Again, this goes back to what we looked at earlier, like attracts like. Your mindset is everything and when you are swimming in positive, gracious thoughts you are attracting that energy back into your life.
You can engage in a formal meditation practice or you can simply spend time in contemplative thought about positive things. Take this time to meditate on everything thats right with your world.
Go to your happy place, relive the best memories and visualise all thats you appreciate in your life. Some people find that journalling isn’t for them and thats fine. If thats you, you may find that a gratitude meditation is perfect for you.
You don’t need any fancy equipment
Simply take some time to purposefully think about what you can be grateful for. Use some of your lunch break to contemplate gratitude. Make the most of your commute to think positive thoughts. Take a walk and ponder what’s right in your world. Instead of screen time, try some meditation time to remind yourself of the many things you have to be excited about.
If you’re struggling to find the enthusiasm for your life, it might be a good time to focus on gratitude. Searching your heart and mind for what you have to be grateful for can interrupt the negative thoughts and focus. Find a method to focus on gratitude that works for you and make it a practice in your everyday life.
I wish you all the best 💚
This post is dedicated to my darling bestie. 5 Years without you today and I am eternally grateful for every moment I had with you 💕💫
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